This weekend’s events cap off a successful summer season

October 11, 2013

LAKE PLACID - Call it the last hurrah of the season. This weekend in Lake Placid is pegged to be one of the biggest as far as tourism goes, and the scheduled events include the trademark of the area - an Olympic-oriented theme.

"It's traditionally one of the biggest, if the THE biggest, weekends of the year," James McKenna, Lake Placid Convention and Visitors Bureau CEO, told the News on Wednesday. "It's not just Columbus Day weekend, but it's also the Canadian Thanksgiving, and the weather looks like it will be right on."

The forecast through the weekend is sun and temperatures in the upper 60s.

One of the most popular events taking place in Lake Placid is the annual Flaming Leaves Festival at the Olympic Ski Jumping Complex.

"We definitely encourage people to go out there, especially if they've never seen ski jumping before," McKenna said, adding that the Sochi send-off is one of the weekend's highlights. (see cover story)

"We expect a large number of athletes to come together for the send off event," he said. "We are hoping for a good crowd turnout."

McKenna mentioned several other events that are included in the weekend's lineup. Among them, the Lake Placid Center for the Arts' screening of the new documentary "Ready to Fly," which chronicles the U.S. Women's Ski Jumping Team's fight to be recognized as an Olympic sport, that takes place at 8 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 13.

"What better way is there to cap off the ski jumping competition?" McKenna asked.

Also on tap is the Lake Placid Brewfest at the Olympic Center, scheduled from 3 to 7 p.m. on Saturday. (see story on page 11). The event is open to everyone 21 years and older, and features nearly 40 micro-brew companies from around the country. Each of the breweries will be on hand to offer samples and talk brewing. There will also be live music and food.

"What better thing is there to do than sample some great beers at this event. It's almost doubled. We are really psyched about this."

McKenna said the summer season has been one of the strongest for Lake Placid and the region as far as the numbers go. He added that events such as the ones slated this weekend help promote the region as a whole, and especially stands out as a good one for tourism in the area.

"This weekend's events definitely caps off the summer season," McKenna told the News. "Overall, we expect this weekend to be pretty close to capacity."